Chronicles of a 20-something Mom and her DSLR. Where will we go and what will we learn?

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Inspiration

Fair warning: this is a wordy post. If you're a bit pressed for time, you might want to come back later. It's also a little disjointed, but hey, it happens.

As much as I love me some technology (if you know me personally, you know I do), I also hate it. The art of conversation seems to be falling by the wayside. Instead of talking, we text or email because it's faster and can be done privately while still in the presence of others. I get it - I really do - but the need to be constantly in contact with the entire world has taken over some of the most intimate parts of our day. Friendships used to be forged by hours of conversation and quality time, not 4,782 text messages. Love blossomed as a result of courtship and manners. There were rules and society (generally) stuck to them.

I spent a few hours with my Grandmother on Sunday. She's 89. No texting or emailing happening there. Shopping with Grannie and my Sister reminded me how important it is to solidify the personal bonds. Time is really all we have and when it's gone, it's gone forever. You'll never get a single minute back that you spent on the phone with someone else while in the physical presence of others.

In her 89 years, Grannie has seen some serious change and major shifts in the world. The Great Depression, the invention of the guitar, the rise & fall of the Berlin Wall, vinyl records, Woodstock, radios, televisions, the attack on Pearl Harbor, creation of the interstate system & roadways, Frank Sinatra, The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley, Sputnik, the Apollo Missions, the Mars Rover, touch-tone phones, sending her son to Vietnam, cars, airplanes, washing machines, microwaves, the internet, mobile phones, Harvey Milk, JFK, the Golden Gate Bridge, record players, Ranch Dressing, Y2K, Civil Rights Movement, Feminism, the technology boom, and countless other innovations and historical events have happened since she was born. It's very sobering to take a look at the timeline of your life or those around you, and I'd encourage you to take a moment and think about your parents or grandparents and their lives.

At any rate, all of this thinking has led to inspiration. What do you carry with you throughout the years? What says the most about a person? Their financial status? Their education or lack thereof? Their character & morals? And how do you capture it in a photograph?

I'm going to be working on a photography project for a little while. I might even call on some of you to help me out. When all is said and done, I'll be sharing it.

This is a first real "project" for me, and there's something so liberating about doing it for yourself rather than a graded assignment. Maybe it's because there is no wrong answer...